The cost of pensions for city of Tucson employees has soared 255 percent over the past nine years, pushing the annual bill for taxpayers past $50 million a year, an Arizona Daily Star analysis shows.
That $50 million is almost enough to cover the annual cost of operating the Parks and Recreation Department, and more than the city spends to collect garbage and run the landfills.
The reasons for the increase - and what the cash-strapped city plans to do about it - are the subject of an analysis that appears exclusively in the print edition of the Sunday Arizona Daily Star.
Also exclusive to the print edition, sports columnist Greg Hansen shares his insights into Saturday's basketball game against Kansas, and offers his weekly dose of local sports tidbits in his Sunday Notebook.
Pick up a copy of today's Star at all convenience, drug and grocery stores in the Tucson area or subscribe here. If you're outside Southern Arizona, order an electronic edition delivered to your inbox each day - complete with advertisements and useful search function.
As water lifeline evaporates, Arizona faces a cultural change over water use
